The invention relates to a cardboard box for pourable material, in particular liquids, consisting of a folding box having a rectangular base section and made of card-board, and an inner bag of a heat-sealable material disposed in the box and adhesively secured thereto at least at a number of separate locations.
With regard to packing materials for certain liquids, such as detergent concentrates, there is a trend induced by environment protection considerations to increasingly turn away from pure plastic packing materials in favour of card-board packages in combination with thin plastic sheeting, for containing liquids to be decanted by the user into a bottle for subsequent piecemeal consumption.
There have already been developed cardboard packing materials provided with an inner bag made of an aroma-Protective plastic material and having a pouring spout projecting through a cutout in the cardboard box surrounding the inner bag (DE Patent 33 36 269). The production and manipulation of these packaging materials is rather onerous. Since card-board packages are usually supplied to the filling plant in a flattened-down state, and since a pouring spout attached to the inner bag does not, however, permit the package to be laid flat, the pouring spout can only be attached at the filling plant after the package has been unfolded. The supply of packaging materials of this type to he filling plant is hampered by logistic problems.
Known from DE Patent 26 47 025 is a cardboard box with an inner bag, which can be supplied to the filling plant in a pre-confectioned state, i.e. with the inner bag in place, and in the flattened-down configuration, and which in the unfolded and filled state is of a configuration permitting the inner bag to be opened and at the same time a pouring spout to be formed by tearing off a portion of a cover flap together with a portion of the inner bag. This package comprises an inner cover flap acting to close the folding box at its upper end and formed with a transversely extending slot for the sealed end portion of the inner bag to extend therethrough, so that in the closed state of the folding bag the sealed end portion of the inner bag lies partially below and partially above the inner cover flap. The outer cover flap overlies the inner cover flap and is adhesively secured thereto as well as to the portion of the upper end section of the inner bag overlying the inner cover flap. At the location whereat it overlies the last-named portion of the upper end section of the inner bag, the outer cover flap is formed with a tear perforation permitting it to be torn off together with the respective portion of the inner bag. The specifically incorporated provisions are effective to safely retain the inner bag in place as the package is torn open, to thereby facilitate this opening operation.